just a tad. the euro is trading to $1.2966. consolations between china and the u.s. have seen better days. the u.s. has released a report saying that americans have -- should not do business with communications companies. >> the report follows an 11- month investigation into two companies. >> legislators in washington fear foreign telecom companies could pose a threat to u.s. national securit. it says firms could use their business in the u.s. to install software to is by an ounce -- spy on u.s. infrastructure. they named two companies and they believe they should be wary of huawei and zte. the two companies deny the allegations and have the support of the chinese government. >> when china in the u.s. benefit from the business we do in america are, we hope the congress will monday's their opinions on prejudice but on the facts so as not to hurt bilateral trade relations. >> this is just the latest battle in a war of words over trade and economic practices. the u.s. has accused china of unfairly subsidizing renewable energy and the auto industry in china expressing complaints to the w

u.s. ratings agency moody's, which expects hard times for german banks and warns they are not as crisis-resistant as institutes in other countries. it put pressure on the dax, but the german dax was also under pressure after a very successful week due to very disappointing results from the u.s. >> let's get a closer number at that -- a closer look at those numbers. it was a down day for the tax, ending its winning streak because of concerns about europe's banks. it was a similar story for the year of stocks -- the euro stoxx 50. trading is still under way for the dow jones industrial average, and it is being dragged lower by disappointing corporate earnings. the euro is trading for $1.3021. and suddenly, today is the 25th anniversary of the stock market crash of 1987, known as black monday. the dow plunged more than 20% on that date. >> that's right. in europe, leaders are hoping the eu's banking deal will help shore markets and reduce the possibility of an event like that happening again. >> but the sad reality on the ground is that ordinary citizens continue to feel the pinch o

governing body said it was ratifying sanctions taken earlier this month by the u.s. anti-dumping agency -- anti-doping agency, usada. >> it had claimed that armstrong was at the heart of the "most sophisticated and successful" of doping programs the sport had seen. >> uci has ousted him from the sport. >> uci will ban armstrong from cycling and strip him of his seventh tour de france titles. lance armstrong has no place in cycling. >> the uci upheld sanctions imposed by usada, accuses armstrong of being at the heart of a systematic doping culture. usada alleges the rider's victories from 1999-2005, after his recovery from cancer, or helped by illegal substances -- were helped by illegal substances. his teammates say he was bullying them into keeping quiet. there has been criticism of the uci for accepting $100,000 in donations -- 100,000 euros in donations from armstrong. armstrong is defined. -- defiant. >> but ask me how are you doing. i've said, i've been better, but i've also been worse. among last week, he stepped down as chairman of his -- >> last week, he stepped down as chairman

the, the u.s. security council condemned syria for firing mortars at turkey earlier this week, an attack in which five people died. for the very latest, let's go straight to ankara where thomas is standing by for us. tell us more on this latest incident. what more do you know? >> we know that federal villages from the area have told the turkish media that they heard explosions in the vicinity just over the border. nobody knows if it is quite true yet if those explosions came from turkish rounds fighting with syria or indeed fighting raging inside syria between rebels and government forces. it is a little bit unclear at the moment. what seems to be clear, though, is that turkey is making it very clear to syria that it is not accepting any more of this cross-border shelling.% the response was immediate by turkish artillery into syria itself. >> let's look into the warning there -- he has been saying since the middle of the week that turkey is not looking for work, but today, he is now saying it is close to war. what should we read into that? >> everyone is trying to find a balance b

. >> the u.s. election campaign is gathering momentum in its final two weeks. u.s. president barack obama and his republican challenger mitt romney have had their final tv debate. >> they sparred over foreign policy where the president is perceived to have a clear evanish, but with the economy on the minds of most -- most voters, the candidates repeatedly reverted to domestic policy to win support. >> with two weeks until the election, the last debate between u.s. president barack obama and challenger mitt romney is dominating the news cycle. the topic was foreign policy, and viewer polls showed romney struggled to distance himself from the president. >> romney has pretty much to reach his breaking point. he has no argument anymore, and he never answers questions straight up. >> i thought last night, it showed that both romney and obama are pretty much in sync with foreign policy. >> with a race that is still too close to call, both candidates refused to give ground. president obama highlighted his track record leading the u.s. abroad and said mitt romney lacks experience and has an

vice-president of candidates exchanged verbal blows in the u.s. presidential race. across europe this friday, there is collation and disbelief. the european union has won the nobel peace prize. >> most leaders are bogged down in efforts to deal with the eurozone debt crisis. >> there was a spontaneous and unprecedented round of applause. >> one i woke up, i did not expected to be such a good day. we received the news of the award of the global peace prize. >> it came as a surprise to many in brussels on rent for its historic role in honoring the continent. >> they have helped to transform most of europe from a continental or continental peace. >> the president of the european parliament's interrupted the business to to vienna to respond. >> for me, this is also a personal thing. everything i have worked for, all the energy into pushing this forward has been honored today. >> there was a last-minute change to the schedule. currently in finland ahead of the european council summit, the finnish prime minister played down the importance of the eu's achievement. >> we had the two world war

policy makers that control the euro crisis. there are worries about the failure of u.s. policy makers to agree so far on a fiscal plan. >> reporter: he ran through a list of challenges in developed countries. government spending cuts, a weak financial system, high unemployment. emerging economies such as china drove the recovery from the global downturn, but they have cooled off. >> clearly the downside if the global economy were to slow much more than expected, then additional policy measures will be needed. >> reporter: he said he was encouraged by the easy money policies of many banks and pieces to what he called a complex puzzle are starting to fall into place. he said if the puzzle can be completed, then one can hope that the worst might be behind us. ron madison, nhk world, tokyo. >>> this high level gathering wouldn't have been happening here in tokyo if things had gone according to plan. accordi organizers originally decided to go in egypt. immediately raised his hand and proposed japan would host. we spoke with the vice minister of finance for international finance. >> report

storms sandy wreaks havoc in the u.s. and canada. >> swiss banking giant ubs announces plans to fire more than 10,000 employees and a treatment from investment banking. >> the man due to challenge angela merkel in next year's german elections denies neglecting his duties as a lawmaker by moonlighting. >> new york is closed for business in the aftermath of super storm sandy, which left at least 30 people dead. >> damages are likely to surpass those of last year's hurricane irene. sandy has move left much flooding in its wake, paralyzing new york's mass transit system and leaving millions in the dark -- sandy has left much flooding in its wake. >> here is more from america's most populous city. >> the storm has moved on, but the water remains. many of the city's road and subway tunnels are still flooded. public transport will be out of action for days to come. the effects of sandy can be seen on the streets -- residents are relieved that the worst is now behind them. >> well, last night, we could look down this street here, and we saw the river coming toward us. it actually look like someth

series of car bombs target government forces in aleppo. >> the u.s. revs up what europe stalls. -- while europe's tallest. captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org-- it is the day the people of germany celebrate the unity. 22 years ago, east and west reunited with the blessing of their european neighbors. now there has been a pill to draw the right lessons in the crisis europe faces. >> the president of the parliament says his country must strive for greater unity in europe and he warned against perverting -- reverting to old national rivalries as the weaker members of the eurozone struggle. >> the speech in munich is the center of the celebration. >> the ceremony began with music from richard strauss's opera. more than 1500 people attended the ceremony, including germany's top political leaders. the bavarian state premier compared the process of german unification to that of creating a united europe. then he gave the keynote address. >> we are german europeans. we must devote to the nfl -- unification of europe the same effort we made in german unificati

up in the third quarter of the year. >> the u.s. commerce department says the economy grew by an annual rate of 2%, thanks mainly to increased consumer spending, a recovery in the housing market, and an uptick in government spending. analysts say that shows the u.s. economy is improving, but only very slowly and not by enough to bring down unemployment significantly. on to the markets, and german blue chips managed to lock in solid gains on the last day of the trading week. our correspondence sent us this summary of the action from the frankfurt stock exchange. >> good news from the american economy that really brought the dax up to speed. it turned around and started gaining and held those until the end. the fact that the german consumer confidence was at a five-year high due to stable incomes and a labor market was not an issue here that really propelled share prices forward. for the week, the picture is different. the dax losing about 2%. people worried about the debt crisis and above all its effect on individual companies, and investors could see what effect that had in many

. general, the mood was very good. oraror icony, and lots of positive u.s. corporate numrsued strong investment banking. tiayget help very soon. >> let's get a closer ir' benchmark tax is higher on the day. it wasur stoxx 50rly 0.7 higher tians. th wt toake its for ts,ut ect deilare no car thpart ny pplfeheubc sinue' jt w -olc caer heaslsma goodonntrspen iertial ppt secionstuon tn moac sfe, igo thbd aiho mu tyard tse licsnd wt r.heouesan- rrtiaw w cinupfttoal tpelen oos aians os kenwenau ia ge tu >>elmeac >> cuba is gra i cizs from february of nextea - jaar rher- cubans will be able to leave thesld wiouanxipeit the foreign ministry sd ty llll pspt. and they will be allowed to stbrdonr anefe. of did two years. e rorisarf psint ronald castro's attemptso deiz ca- president raul st' attpts to merze ba >> what ledo iseaioy e cuban govnment to popular desires to travel? ca ithmit of a major change right now? >>. t ihe pross of a gradually coroedhae ths t t mraon front, so to say, a belitieare wchs et iortant because many cubans have relativesbrdn amutls many other places, so the desiro b a

. u.s. president barack obama has arrived in new jersey to tour the devastation left in the wake of super storm sandy. >> obama was joined by new jersey governor chris christie, who is republican, but christie has praised the way the president has handled the crisis. they viewed storm damage by helicopter. obama will also be meeting with residents and emergency workers. >> cleanup work is in full swing on the east coast after sandy flooded cities, washed out bridges, and caused billions of dollars in damage. >> but new york city is making it clear it is back in business. mayor michael bloomberg rate in the opening bell at the new york stock exchange, which was closed for two days. >> the storm killed over 40 people on the east coast and caused unprecedented damage. >> life is slowly returning to normal in new york. on wall street, major stock their first two-day closure ine- over a century. emergency generators provided the power. most of lower manhattan is still in the dark. an unusual event in the city that never sleeps. >> you look uptown, and you see lights. you look downtown an

for more to damage the u.s. state department said it considered -- for more. >> the u.s. state department said it considered turkey's response to be proportionate. thursday morning, turkey launched a second round of shelling. some reports say several syrian soldiers were killed. >> the retaliation came after five turkish civilians were killed after syrian mortar fire. turkey says that syria has now apologized for that incident and has promised it would not happen again. >> it is a small turkish town bordering war-torn syria. it has come under the line of fire. syrian borders struck a residential neighborhood, killing five civilians -- syrian mortars struck a residential neighborhood, killing five civilians. cross-border buyer has struck 37 times since the start of the syrian uprising -- cross-border fire has struck turkey several times since the start of the syrian uprising. the government says this bill is not a declaration of war against syria. >> turkey is not a country that wants war. it is a country that wants peace, but we're also a part of a country that is visible -- ca

two countries australia and the u.s. are tackling the problem. first nhk world reports from sydney. >> reporter: this high school in south australia has set up a program to get students to confront the issue of bullying. and look at the way to tackle it. >> what kind of characteristics might a person have that leads them to get bullied a lot? a reason? >> sexuality. >> reporter: professor ken rigby is one of the leading thourts on bullying. he's been asked to lead a class addressing the issue. he gets the students to give their opinions on why bullying happens and how they can stop it. >> what might he do? what might he say? stop. yes. what else? you look for a teacher. yeah. >> reporter: professor rigby says bystanders play a key role in stopping bullies. >> the research showed 50% of the time the bullying stops. when they do say something, then the bullying is likely to stop. >> notify someone else about it. it's the easy way to get rid of it, prevent it in the future. >> i think that they took the matter very seriously, came up with sensible suggestions. if they are keen on tryi

converting it safely into u.s. dollars. the crisis is being blamed on international sanctions choking off iranian oil exports. critics of the government limit for economic mismanagement. >> president's mahmoud ahmadinejad has been defending his record, saying iran will define -- defy the enemies behind the sanctions. >> the iranian currency has fallen to a record low, losing two-thirds of its value since sanctions were imposed because of their nuclear program. just last week, it's fallen almost a third against the u.s. dollar. many air changing their savings into hard currency. mahmoud ahmadinejad says the country will ride out the sanctions and blames the country's enemies for the collapse of the currency. >> they have managed to reduce the part of our oil sales, but hopefully we will compensate for this. this is a battle. the enemy thinks it can crush the iranian nation with its pressure. >> iranians have lost a great deal of buying power. inflation is around 25%. meat and milk are becoming increasingly expensive while vegetables of doubled in price. nonetheless, president's mahmoud ahm

-led soldiers are stationed in afghanistan, mostly from the u.s. some nations want to speed up the pull out of the soldiers. but they confirm no changes to the withdrawal plan. ministers insist military police control an area covering three-quarters of the country's population. they also agree to draw up plans to train to handle the aftermath of the combat troop withdrawal. nato secretary general insisted the schedule is based on objective assessments of the situation in afghanistan. >> it's not because partners rush for the exit. it's not because of lack of cohesion within our coalition. on the contrary. >> but relations between nato-led forces and afghanistan have been strained by insider attacks. afghan military and police, or people wearing afghan uniforms, have killed more than 50 foreign soldiers this year. >>> people in north korea are marking the 67th anniversary of the founding of the ruling workers party. it's the first time the new leader, kim jong un, has overseen the celebrations. north koreans lined up on the hill in pyongyang to offer flowers in front of statues of t

economy, and lots of positive u.s. corporate numbers fueled the mood. goldman sachs profit rose much higher than expected thanks t the strong investment banking. shares of banks could profit from these results, driven also by speculation that spain may get help very soon. >> let's get a closer look at those gains on the global market. we stick in frankfurt where germany's benchmark tax is higher on the day. it was nearly 2% higher. as for the euro stoxx 50, nearly 3% higher. the dow jones is nearly 0.75% higher. >> several non-governmental organizations in berlin have called for more financial transparency for german politicians. they want to make it a prerequisite for parliamentarians to show whether cash comes from. >> the german parliament has rules for this, but exact details are not clear. the debate was spurred by the designated candidate for chancellor of the sbd party. many people feel the public should have information on his precise earnings. >> steinbrueck's talents have not just how to - political career. he has also made good money on the lecture circuit. after fierce sc

significant damage along the east coast of the u.s. as he said, microsoft has unveiled the newest version of its windows operating system. >> it is a radical redesign and will be microsoft posted first operating system to run on both desktop and tablet pc's. microsoft's boss steve ballmer shut up for the big announcement. microsoft is hoping to gain a foothold in the lucrative mobile internet maret. >> how will users react to the new design? we look now in our latest report. >> the launch of windows 8, microsoft's new operating system, is big news in the tech industry, featuring a completely new interface, which has surprised users. messages from social networks feature in the home page, and so the news updates. windows has been overhauled. can users at that? >> the new interface is certainly very cutting edge. it features a lot of innovations that users have to get used to. once you know how to use them, they are really easy to operate. >> microsoft will spend up to $1 billion advertising windows 8. in recent years, apple had made gains in laptops and tablet computers. plus, sale

tokyo. people in the u.s. northeast are looking out their windows and seeing the blurry images of a storm headed their way. they're facing an onslaught of rain and wind as hurricane sandy pushing inland. two people are missing after a ship sank off north carolina. several municipalities in the storm's path have declared a state of emergency. forecasters say the storm is unusually large. it's expected to cut across new jersey over the next several hours. more than 6,000 houses in the state have already lost electricity. u.s. president barack obama made a direct appeal to people in the hurricane's path. >> the most important message that i have for the public right now is please listen to what your state and local officials are saying. when they tell you to evacuate, you need to evacuate. >> 370,000 new yorkers who live close to the water have left. the wind was so strong it bent the metal on a crane at this construction site. city officials have shet down the transit system. businesses and shops have closed. workers are piling up sandbags in front of subway entrances and buildings. >

team's record winning streak. a superstorm could hit the u.s. east coast in the next 12 hours. >> hurricane sandy is preparing to make landfall. forecasters say it is on track to combine with an oncoming cold front. >> new york city has come to a standstill. officials have shut down public transport, schools, and the stock exchange. >> the national hurricane service says the storm and is gaining strength as it turns toward the coast. >> in norfolk, va., hurricane sandy is hitting the coast with strong winds and heavy rains. some areas are already under water. even though the full force of the storming is yet to come. in ocean city, md., the first signs of the approaching storm can also be felt. authorities have closed the city's beach. >> this is a big one. it is supposed to be huge. everybody is supposed to evacuate from 17th street down. >> this is almost a ghost town. the residents have either left or barricaded themselves inside their homes. only a couple of daring beachgoers remain. >> [no audio] >> further north, in new york, preparations have been underway for days. peo

u.n. general assembly, he claimed that france, the u.s., saudi arabia, qatar, and turkey were injured. in the syrian domestic fears -- were interfering in syrian domestic affairs. in syria itself, dozens of civilians have died in the army shelling and air raids at various flashpoints. that is according to the syrian observatory for human rights. they have been named -- peer steinbruck has been named as a candidate for chancellor in next year's election. >> this nomination is expected to receive widespread endorsement at a special party conference in december. >> the unanimous support of the party executive was no doubt a welcome surprise for peer steinbruck. while the election is still a long way away, he is already setting the tone for the campaign. >> it may involve a bit of humor and a bit of wit. some of the best weapons to use against your political opponents are wit and positive imagery with other than just a head-on attack. >> steinbruck says germany needs to put the focus back on a socially-just a market economy. -- socially-just market economy. for some, he represents welfare

representation at the united nations. and this year's nobel prize in chemistry goes to two u.s. researchers who work on cell receptors. >> a nobel committee member tried to startle journalists to prove a point. he was showing how a spike in adrenalin levels brings cell receptors into play. these receptors in form cells that the presence of noise or light. they make it possible for cells to adapt to changing conditions. in humans, they can help trigger the flight or fight mechanism. cell receptors are the focus of this year's nobel prize winning research. robert lefkowitz was one of the winners and said the news was a shock. >> the phone rang, and i did not hear it. i wear ear plugs, and i do not wear them when i sleep, and my wife gave me an elbow, and there it was. a total surprise. >> brian kobilka, who shared the prize, says he hopes his development will spur the creation of new drugs. >> i hope we can translate these discoveries to develop safer, more effective drugs, and more economically developed drugs. >> the nobel prize this year is worth about 930,000 euros, to be split between th

for the year. china is being hurt by a drop in demand from the eurozone and the u.s. >> i don't know about you, but it seems like everyone has one these days -- smartphones. they are changing the way we interact with the world around us. >> images taken by ordinary citizens brought us right to the action in egypt's tahrir square. >> a new exhibition is looking at how that is having an impact on how we perceive the world. it is called "cairo: open city." >> whether they are protesting or in peaceful resistance, and it shows the mood the egyptian people share. taken by photojournalist and emmitt -- amateurs, the images bear witness against the official narrative's. a work of street art encapsulates the message. >> it is the slogan for everyone who takes pictures, makes films, and publicizes these pictures. it is an alternative to end protests against state reporting, which portrayed the events differently. >> activist jonathan rashad shares his photos through social network flickr. his theme is the war of images and who controls who. we asked what he thinks still remains of a revo

less restraint when it comes to silencing his critics. >> u.s. president barack obama and his republican challenger mitt romney are back on the campaign trail today visiting key swing states just hours after squaring off in a confrontatioal tv debate. >> obama is visiting the swing state of ohio. mitt romney on the other hand spent the day in virginia, another key state likely to determine this election's outcome. >> last night's debates saw a obama back in rhetorical form of less than three weeks to go -- with less than three weeks to go. >> after a listless performance in the first debate, barack obama promised to be more aggressive in the rematch. after preliminary niceties, both candidates went on the attack. >> the middle class has been crushed over the last four years, and jobs have been too scarce. i know what it takes to bring them back. >> when he said behind closed doors that 47% of the country considered themselves victims, who refuse personal responsibility, think about who he was talking about. folks on social security who have worked all their lives. veterans who

never failed a doping test, but the u.s. anti-doping agency says it has other evidence he used banned substances, including epo, cortisone, and testosterone. the agency imposed a lifetime ban on the athlete in august and stripped him of his titles, saying 26 witnesses backed up their claims, including 11 of armstrong's former teammates. the agency also says armstrong conspired with managers to supply fellow team members. it has compiled a detailed report including bank statements and e-mails and sent it to the international cycling union. the body has criticized the u.s. agency's rulings on armstrong and challenged it to justify its ban. the union has three weeks in which to appeal the agency's ruling. if it decides not to, armstrong will permanently lose his seven toward affronts titles -- seven tour de france titles. >> going from lance armstrong to a very special anniversary -- thursday marked the 50th anniversary of european sovereign observatory, europe's leading organization for astronomical research. >> the eso currently has three observatories in chile. the research pla

generale has rejected. u.s. carmaker ford has announced it will close its factory in a belgian town by the end of 2014. >> like many other car makers, ford is suffering from declining sales in crisis-hit markets in southern europe. analysts estimate the automotive giant could save 350 billion euros with the closure. >> the plant, which ford calls underutilized, currently employs 4100 people. >> "hands off my job" -- the workers at the ford plant do not want to give up, but it is already too late. >> please take note that the board of directors has decided all production will cease here. am employees are angry and afraid -- >> employees are angry and afraid. 3400 workers will be out of work when the plant and production -- ends production. >> i just hope that the people who made this decision can sleep well tonight. >> i was not expecting this at all. restructuring, sure, but not this. >> it is a shame for us. for the economy and the region, it is a catastrophe. >> ford produces three models in belgium, but to save money, it now plans to move production to spain. that tough times for be

financial transactions. >> the nobel prize for physics goes to the scientists from france and the u.s. >> we began in greece where tens of thousands of angry protesters filled the streets of athens on tuesday to greet german chancellor angela merkel. >> it is her first visit there since the eurozone crisis erupted. she reaffirmed their commitment to keep the debt-ridden state inside your's single currency but offered no promise of further aid. >> a new report on the greek reform process is due next month, and in the meantime, greece is negotiating highly unpopular austerity measures. protesters blamed merkel. >> this morning's peaceful protest turned violent in their early afternoon. police used tear gas to disperse demonstrators. some 40,000 people took to the streets of athens to express their anger with the eu, the austerity measures, and the german chancellor. safely away from the protests, angela merkel said she understood the problems facing many greeks. she promised help as athens performs its health system. >> i believe it will be worth it in the long run. if problems are not

immigrant who was a u.s. citizen. in europe, people talk about politics and are educated about in the family. here, people are apathetic about politics. they take everything for granted because they do not realize that problems could result of the don't pay attention. whether there should be 8 for the line for people who are undecided, they are not undecided, they don't know what is going on. i saw a news item right after the presidential debate on c- span, they were doing a focus group on the undecideds. it turns out that one of the women in the focus group was an actress who was paid to be in the focus group. it just shows the extent to which people who are running once did do people into going for -- want to do people into going for what they what. -- want to dupe people into going for what they want. host: here is a comment on twitter -- here is another bad from crossroads from the karl rove group. >> obama promised -- if your family is making $250,000 per year, my plan will not raise your taxes. >> on true, middle-class americans face a huge impact obama claims mitt romney will r

political spouses affect your vote. caller: absolutely not. and i am an independent for u.s. senate in florida. and i'me-in candidate, single with a mensa iq, and i'm the owner of two companies. geraldine ferraro was the best candidate running back years ago. vote for pete. host: let's go to our next call in hindsville, alabama, on our democrat line. good morning. no, they don't affect my vote. they are very intelligent women, but i've already made up my mind. so the spouses don't have anything to do with that. host: do they give more perspective and to who the candidates are? radio station in washington, wtop, says -- do you feel the spouses can give more of a human side to the person? caller: they might try, but most people see what the. candidates the. it's kind of hard for them to change the way people perceive the spouse. -- they might try, but most people see what the candidate is about. it has no effect on who i will vote for. host: andy is a democrat in florida. caller: i don't think spouses have anything to do with my vote. i vote for who's going to do the best for the peop

accurate, it sounds like the u.s. is taking a position where we are likely to jettison our allies. the last thing we would rot -- we would want to do right now is abandon our allies. they have actually been more forward beginning and we have been. host: that was senator portman talking yesterday on "meet the press." here is a follow-up peace from "the new york times." "the u.s. and iran denied plans for a talk on the eve of the debate." host: david axelrod talked about this yesterday on the "meet the press." here he is. [video clip] [no audio] >> the currency has dropped in value by 50%. they are feeling the heat. that is what the sanctions were meant to do. if they are sensible, they are looking at that and saying that it is time to set aside nuclear ambitions and save our economy. that is what president has been working on, the project he has been working on for all of these years. we were isolated in our position on iran myriad should ask about this. host: there is a number in "-- from "bob schieffer." host: we will dig more into foreign policy and its role in campaign 2012. ri

. it has been u.s. policy, regardless of who the president is, since the truman administration, that the united states will stick up for israel and ensure its security in a dangerous neighborhood. the distance that governor romney is going to try to play up is the idea that benjamin netanyahu's government deserves the unqualified backing on domestic israeli policy as well this its policies toward the palestinians. it is correct in the sense that the obama administration has been highly critical of the settlements, but let's keep in mind that george w. bush's father, president george h. w. bush had very much the same differences, and went a step further in criticism. host: virginia. murdoch. independence caller -- independent caller. caller: there is hundreds of years of history of this in the middle east. the british and other european nations at one. divided it up and kind of controlled it through occupation. the american policy has always been to support israel, but we do not look as -- at each individual nation as having their own sovereignty, and we do not always support the lead